Give a short summary of the text according to your answers.

9. Fill in the gaps in the passage about Bede using the correct forms of the verbs in the frame:

The Venerable Bede ... an Anglo-Saxon monk. At the age of nine he ... to one of the monasteries in England where he ... and ... for the rest of his life. His books on a wide variety of subjects ... a great source of knowledge of early English History. The most famous one is Ecclesiastical History of the English People (finished 731). After Bede ... in 735, his disciple Cuthbert... in a letter that the dying man... the verse of St. Paul the apostle telling of the fearfulness of falling into the hands of the God.

be, move, study, teach, write, die, sing

ANGLO-NORMAN PERIOD (11^th– 13^th centuries)

In the year 1066, in the Battle of Hastings, the Anglo – Saxon king's army was defeated by William, Duke of Normandy, who became King of England. A strong feudal monarchy was established in the country. The power of the Catholic Church had become very great. The Normans came from the north-west of France. They brought with them the culture of their country and the French language. Thus three languages were spoken in England. The language of the nobility was French; the churchmen used Latin and common people spoke Anglo-Saxon.

The three social classes of the country had their own literature. The Normans brought the romance to England. The romance told of love and adventure. Among the best known romances are the legends of King Arthur and his Knights of the Round Table. The literature of the Church was scholastic, moralizing, and it supported the feudal system. The Anglo-Saxons composed their own popular poetry. The main genres were the fabliaux – funny stories about townspeople, and the besterias – story in which the characters were animals. Though the English became an oppressed nation, the Anglo-Saxon dialects were not suppressed in the country. Communication in three languages went on during the following 200 years. These factors account for the absence of any memorable English literature in the first century of the Middle English period.

Many French words came into the language. Under the Influence of French the pronunciation of the people changed. There appeared many new vowels (diphthongs) in their native language. The newly formed pronunciation was nearing that of Modern English. French suffixes – ment (government, agreement) and – age (courage, marriage) began to be used with words of Anglo-Saxon origin.

The struggle for supremacy between French and English words went on the following way: a) if the French word meant a thing or idea for which there was no name in English, then the French word came into the language. Such words were those relating to government, church, court, food, art, pleasure; b) if the object or idea was clearly expressed in English, then the English word remained; c) if both words remained, then it was because of a light but clear-cut difference in the meaning. An interesting example is to be found in the first chapter of "Ivanhoe" by W. Scott, Wambo, a Saxon serf, tells the swineherd Gurth that his swine will be turned into Norman before morning. The Anglo-Saxon word "swine" means the living animal, while the French word "pork" is the name of the food.

As a result of this process there appeared a large store of synonyms. Each of them has its own shade of meaning. The use of one or other of these synonyms makes all the difference between the written and the spoken language. The words of Anglo-Saxon origin are used in conversations, while the words of French origin are used in formal speech.

to give up – to abandon to came in – to enter

to give in – to surrender to go on – to continue

Before the 12th century people thought that books and any kind of learning belonged to the Church only. But with the development of such sciences as medicine and law corporation of general study called "universitas" appeared in Italy and France.

Paris was the great center of higher education for English students. In 1168 schools were founded in Oxford which formed the first university, the second university was formed in 1209 in Cambridge, to which a large group of students migrated from Oxford. The graduates were awarded degrees: Bachelor, Master and Doctor.

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